Expanding the Earth Charter Global Learning Opportunity (e-GLO)

E-GLO is an online course designed to be an international, cross-cultural learning experience on sustainability, ethics, and new media communication.

Photo: Earth Charter

By CEC member Douglas F. Williamson

The Earth Charter Global Learning Opportunity (e-GLO) has set ambitious goals for 2011. After a successful end to 2010, e-GLO looks to enhance and professionalize its program in the coming year. The online course hopes to solidify a more long-term strategy for the program and the elaboration of its e-GLO youth network.

e-GLO is an online course that teaches youth leaders, predominantly in developing countries, about sustainability issues, ethics, project development, fundraising, and strategic new media communications. The course was originally developed by CEC member Dominic Stucker while he was the Earth Charter International Youth Coordinator, and by Mike Sheehan of Beatboard Education and Training in Victoria, Canada. e-GLO has been hosted by Ashie S. Hirji and her secured multimedia platform, Heart in Action Enterprises, since its inception in 2008. The team now also includes Jaana Laitinen, the current Earth Charter International Youth Coordinator, who has led the program from the Earth Charter since 2009. She joins, Mike, Ashie, and CEC Member Douglas F. Williamson as part of the current program management team.

Douglas, an instructor in e-GLO 1 in 2008 and a program developer and instructor for last year’s e-GLO 3, believes the course has the potential to further numerous sustainable development goals that are in line with IUCN’s mission. The course fosters a truly global community, with participants from literally all over the world, and allows a unique knowledge and experience-sharing atmosphere. Since e-GLO 1 in 2008, the course has trained more than 100 youth leaders from more than 50 countries, 90% of which are in the developing world. Course participants meet every two weeks over the course of an academic semester to learn from sustainability and communications professionals, write proposals, and master basic online marketing and communications skills for project awareness raising and fundraising. Participants have writing assignments, as well as several new media creation tasks including video making.

“I am really excited to continue to work with e-GLO in 2011,” Douglas stated. “The opportunity to teach youth leaders around the world vital communications and marketing skills for their community projects, and temper these young minds with a solid foundation in sustainability and environmental ethics is a privilege. I am certain that this course is fostering a community of young leaders who will one day be morally and professionally prepared to take on local, regional, and global sustainability challenges.”

The e-GLO team has already begun to plan e-GLO 4 and is also in the process of elaborating a fundraising campaign to solidify the professional core of the program and attract more and better guest lecturers. In 2011, e-GLO will continue to bridge the digital divide and enhance its global youth leaders community